In this episode, Yukihiko Hamada, Programme Manager for Money in Politics, is joined by Dr. Sam Power and Dr. Wouter Wolfs to discuss how political finance shapes the political and electoral landscape in the EU and the UK. In this in-depth conversation on the influence of money in democracy, they dive into the challenges of third-party spending, online campaign finance, and the role emerging technologies—like AI—can play in improving political finance oversight. Background Reading: https...

In this episode of Peer-to-Peer, we speak with Alice Hill and Erik Asplund to explore how extreme weather, intensified by climate change, impacts elections and disenfranchises voters. Alice and Erik share their insights on the challenges disasters pose to voting, the role of climate change in increasing the frequency and/or intensity of extreme weather events, and how natural hazards are already affecting elections around the world. They also discuss the impact of hurricanes Helene and Milton...

The influence of money in Indian politics has long been a subject of debate, with concerns over its impact on democracy, governance, and the political landscape.In this episode, Khushbu Agrawal speaks to Milan Vaishnav, exploring this nexus in India, where money is the currency of power. From the soaring costs of elections to the criminalization of politics, this episode uncovers how financial power has the potential to shape policies, politicians, and political outcomes in the world’s larges...

The world-renowned elections expert, Professor Pippa Norris, talks to International IDEA's Head of Communications Alistair Scrutton, and to Dr Seema Shah, Head of International IDEA's Democracy Assessment Unit, about the importance of electoral integrity and public perceptions of the credibility of elections around the world. Read the #GlobalStateofDemocracy 2024 Report: https://www.idea.int/gsod/2024/

Democracy is on trial in the climate crisis. It is charged with having failed—and with continuing to fail—to prevent dangerous climate change. It is indicted on a fundamental breach of a key obligation of legitimate government—to ensure the safety and survival of the people to whom democracies owe their allegiance.”Based on the report Climate Change and Democracy Insights from Asia and the Pacific, International IDEA's Climate Change and Democracy Adviser, David Rosén, talks to Professor Joo-...

En esta conversación con Marcela Ríos Tobar, directora regional para América Latina de IDEA Internacional, se explican las polémicas elecciones presidenciales en Venezuela, desde las irregularidades en el proceso hasta la represión actual, así como alternativas para lograr resultados más democráticos.Invitada: Marcela Ríos Tobar, directora de IDEA Internacional para América Latina y el Caribe.Anfitriona: Yasnaya Guibert, oficial de comunicaciones de IDEA Internacional.Contenido...

International IDEA's Secretary-General, Kevin Casas-Zamora, discusses with Brian Winter, editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly, a range of issues related to Latin American democracy, from what recent elections say about the region’s political health, to the potential impact of the US election and how governments should deal with insecurity and violence.

Money – both received and spent – is part of the normal workings of democratic life. It enables political participation and representation. Money helps spread the voices and ideas that are the basis for democratic politics. It is nonetheless clear that money is capable of inflicting significant distortions on the democratic processes. As we conclude six months into the super-electoral year, the issue of political finance has come to the fore quite prominently in many of the elections th...

“What happens when suddenly people attack the integrity of the electoral process? Well, you actually need to have knowledge then because otherwise you are defenseless. If you know how elections work and how in many countries it's technically almost impossible to rig the election, then you will be protected against disinformation.”International IDEA's Head of Communications Alistair Scrutton talks to Alberto Fernandez Gibaja, Head Digitalization and Democracy about all issues related to ...

International IDEA’s Anna Dziedzic spoke to Dr Yu Jie Chen to hear her reflections on the 2024 Taiwanese elections. They discuss the implications of the new status quo – in which neither of the two major parties hold a majority of legislature seats – and the increasingly sophisticated ways that Beijing seeks to influence Taiwan’s elections. Dr Yu Jie Chen is an Assistant Research Professor at Academia Sinica in Taiwan and an Affiliated scholar of the US-Asia Law Institute of New York...

The 'Global State of Democracy 2023 Report – The New Checks and Balances' highlighted that there are trends of contraction around the world, but also bright spots of hope. A day after International IDEA’s #GSoD2023 Global Launch event, Marcus Brand, Head of International IDEA’s Myanmar Programme talked to Kunthida Rungruengkiat, Director of the Progressive Movement Foundation about the state of democracy in Thailand. Is Thailand an example of contracting democracy? Is it even a democratic...

Drawing from the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic the LEGITIMULT (Legitimate Crisis Governance in Multilevel Systems) project  aims to identify a model of political legitimate crisis governance that takes into account the interplay between international, national, regional and local governments and institutions. Its guiding research question “Which conditions contribute to democratically legitimate crisis governance?” will allow governments and policy makers to better face the crises of the...

Hace 45 años de que la tercera ola de la democracia bañara las costas de América Latina. Se perciben grandes avances, y hoy las elecciones competitivas son la regla en la región, a excepción de Cuba, Nicaragua y Venezuela.  Sin embargo, la última década ha traído un descontento generalizado con la democracia, que en ocasiones da paso a que triunfe el canto de sirenas del populismo autoritario. Este podcast explica cuáles son los retos de la democracia en la región y qué podemos hacer como...

The prevailing view is that with primarily human-generated content, democracy has suffered widespread erosion due to the proliferation of misinformation and the manipulation of specific narratives that enhance polarization. To what extent can the growth of massive content creation thanks to artificial intelligence (AI) deepen democracy erosion? What tools are at our disposal to protect democracy from AI threats?  International IDEA's Communications Officer, Yasnaya Guibert, talks to Alberto...

A conversation between International IDEA's Secretary-General, Kevin Casas-Zamora and Martin Wolf, the author of the recently published book The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism. Martin Wolf is chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, and one of the world’s most respected journalists, with his columns read eagerly by policymakers and the public around the world. He was awarded the Commander of the British Empire in 2000 “for services to financial journalism”. His latest book The...

In this joint International IDEA and Electoral Integrity Project episode on ‘Elections during Times of Crisis’, Therese Pearce-Laanela speaks with the authors of a new book ‘Elections during Emergencies and Crises: Lessons for Electoral Integrity from the Covid-19 Pandemic’.  Guests:  Toby S. James, Professor of Politics and Public Policy, the University of East Anglia, UK. Alistair Clark, Professor in Politics, the University of Newcastle, UK. Erik Asplund, Senior Programme Officer,...

The ongoing 2023 constitution-building process in Chile, and its relationship with the failed 2021-2022 constitution-building process. Guests Isabel Aninat: Dean of the Law School, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, and member of International IDEA´s Board of AdvisorsJavier Couso: Public Law Professor, Universidad Diego Portales, and Utrecht UniversityBackground Reading: https://constitutionnet.org/country/constitutional-history-chile

A conversation between International IDEA's Head of Communications and Knowledge Management, Alistair Scrutton and the authors of the recently published report "The Constitution and Laws of the Taliban 1994-2001: Hints from the Past and Options for the Future", M. Bashir Mobasher, Shamshad Pasarlay and Mohammad Qadam Shah. Guests: M. Bashir Mobasher, postdoctoral fellow at the American University’s Department of SociologyShamshad Pasarlay is a visiting lecturer at the University of Chicago...

Alison Anitawaru Cole, a lawyer in Aotearoa New Zealand, talks to International IDEA's Regional Communications Officer for the Asia and the Pacific, Billie Phillips, about the unique legal and constitutional responses to climate change in New Zealand and the influence of Māori perspectives on environmentalism and representation.  Guest: Alison Anitawaru Cole - Kaiwhakahaere Matua Māori General Manager at the Climate Change Commission (New Zealand) Background Reading: COP26 delegate: Treaty...

Calls to enfranchise people as young as sixteen are growing around the world, with some countries already adjusting the vote to align with the national age of employment, taxation, and military service.  In Australia, common consensus is lagging but some experts believe it is only a matter of time. From the sidelines of the Australian National University’s APSA conference, Billie Phillips spoke to Professor Lisa Hill about the growing movement. Guest: Professor Lisa Hill, University of...

Owen Gaffney talks to International IDEA's Head of Communications, Alistair Scrutton about  climate change, sustainability and the future of our planet, joining a lot of dotted lines between politics, technology and science. Owen Gaffney is a writer, editor, and global sustainability analyst, co-author of the recently-published Earth For All: A Survival Guide for Humanity. He has formerly worked for the Stockholm Resilience Centre and Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and has...

The storming of Brazil’s Congress and Supreme Court as well as the deadly anti-government protests in Peru underline the challenges facing democracy in Latin America. Why are the legitimacy of governments being questioned? What is behind the increasing political polarization of the region? And are their grounds anywhere for optimism?  International IDEA's Head of Communications and Knowledge Management, Alistair Scrutton , talks to Kevin Casas Zamora, Secretary General of International IDEA.

In this episode of Peer-to-Peer, we speak with David Towriss and Atsuko Hirakawa to learn more about compounding crises, and the effect of a Richter Scale-7 earthquake on an already vulnerable Haiti, Hurricane Tomas, and a cholera outbreak in Haiti and their postponed elections in 2010. This conversation is based on International IDEA’s case study but also Atsuko’s experience and knowledge on how Haiti’s election administrators implemented their 2016 elections after Hurricane Matthew....